I regret to report that the Florida Supreme Court has overturned the Circuit Court and affirmed the constitutionality of the Florida Legislature’s 2011 3% cut to state employee and university employee retirement benefits. (You can find the Supreme Court’s decision on their website.)

We continue to believe that the lower court’s ruling was correct, but there is no further appeal available. Our response to this setback must be to re-double our efforts both to convince the Governor, the Legislature, and the public of the importance to Florida’s future of supporting higher education better than hitherto and to press—as we are already doing in the bargaining currently under way for a new contract—for improved salaries and benefits for faculty.

If you have questions or comments concerning UFF-UF’s position on this matter, I encourage you to speak with a member of UFF-UF’s Chapter Council or to write to me directly.

Sincerely,

John Biro
President
UFF-UF